The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) is urging government offices, ministries, and agencies in the Erongo Region to take part in ethics and integrity training, as participation has been low in recent years.
The ACC, as part of its role to educate the public, provides these trainings upon request from the various government bodies.
Apart from investigating corruption, the ACC is tasked with educating the public so that corruption can be prevented.
The Ministry of Health and Social Services is among the few government institutions that have requested training in the Erongo Region, and so far, staff members at Swakopmund, Walvis Bay, and Omaruru have been empowered.
"We have got a lot of problems when it comes to some OMA's. That's why I applaud Dr. Anna because she was one of the OMAs in Erongo who took the call quickly that no, I want all my health professionals to be trained. So one of them is the Ministry of Health, and we also have to applaud NamRA, who took up the challenge and said all the new employees here in Erongo Region must be trained as part of the induction," said Tobias Amoonga, the Chief Public Education Officer in the Erongo Region.
Amoonga highlighted some of the corruption risks that exist in the health ministry and the role of integrity and ethics in workshops.
"Some medical officers can be bribed to do unethical things; for example, people have to pay so that they can get the services while at the expense of other people who cannot do that. And what we are trying to do actually is to make sure that, especially with medicines, there's quite a lot of perception that medicines would get lost in the hospital."
According to Amoonga, medical officers with integrity will not be tempted to accept bribes as they will promote accountability and deliver quality services to the public.
He said workshops promote proper management of government property, including cars and buildings.
No corruption allegations are currently under investigation by the ACC at any public hospital or clinic in the Erongo Region.